In the Beginning...
On a warm and sunny spring day President Betsy gaveled the meeting to order.
She thanked those whose service made the meeting possible:
Cheree Edwards the Greeter
Don Reed for his pledge
PK for his Invocation
Deirdre Daly for her front desk duties
Mike Malone for his Roving Mic
Bill Prather and Andy Gilman for the set-up
Betsy gave a quick snapshot of history 415 years ago at Jamestown, the first settlement of Europeans in North America.
Announcements
- May 20 scholarship awards at Bocali’s
- Matillija Portfolio Day on May 26 and 27. Larry B. needs a few volunteers
- Diaper Bank May 18 at 9:30 at Chaparral Auditorium
- John Lyon Memorial on May 28 at Anne's and Chad Carper's home
- Allan Jacobs Memorial Hike May 30
- Taft Gardens is sponsoring an opera recital June 4
- President Betsy’s demotion will be June 24 at Kathy and Larry Yee’s house
Fining and Confessions with Bret
Bret did his usual workmanlike job in extracting money for a good cause. His approach was to identify some trait (eg. left handedness) and then ask the victim to estimate how many fellow Rotarians shared the trait. Amusing and effective.
Program with Pradeep Kapedia
PK gave his inspiring talk about the history and effectiveness of the Kapedia Education Foundation. It is indeed an inspiring story: from a modest beginning over 20 years ago, the foundation has grown so that now over 552 students have graduated all over the world.
Here are some of PK’s remarks I found especially relevant:
PK’s children have joined the Board so the foundation will have some stability and continuity
- 66% of the recipients are women. PK is of the opinion that helping women gain education and independence is especially powerful. He told the story of Chan who said to PK, “…now my mind is more valuable than my body”.
- The greatest need is in Sub-Saharan Africa
- He thanked the Rotarians who have assisted KEF.